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Page added on August 13, 2010
Lithium: The Next Frontier in Alternative Energy
AUGUST 10, 2010 07:01 AM
by Anton Polouektov
With peak oil occupying the minds of energy experts and the Gulf oil spill acting as a painful reminder of the dangers posed to the environment by our unquenchable thirst for fossil fuels, a rejuvenated interest in alternative energy is sweeping the nation. Electric and hybrid vehicles are currently the most viable alternative to gas-powered engines, and Lithium-Ion batteries are the most viable means of powering them.
Lithium, the lightweight silver-white alkali metal that stores energy in lithium-ion batteries, has been attracting growing attention from automotive and energy companies over the past several years and the mineral’s meteoric rise to global prominence is seemingly set to continue unabated as a new generation of electric cars begins rolling off the assembly line.
“We believe that the use of electricity as the energy source of choice for vehicles will become dominant over the next 20 to 30 years,” said Dr. Jon Hykawy, who specializes in lithium and alternative energy industries at Byron Capital Markets. “The rationale is simple; GM noted that it takes 25 kWh of electrical energy to move their Volt 100 miles down the highway, while a conventional four cylinder gasoline-powered car might consume 75 kWh of equivalent energy from gasoline to do the same thing. Electrical vehicles are more efficient than internal combustion-based vehicles, and with increasing energy costs, we need to do more with less.”
Dr. Elton Cairns, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at UC Berkeley, echoes the call for increased efficiency.“Oil will be used for the foreseeable future as a major source of energy, but we need to rely also on other sources such as wind and solar energy. We can help the energy situation greatly by using it more efficiently in our vehicles and our buildings.”
Electric cars’ efficiency could help wean the American economy from its dependence on foreign oil. “We could certainly see a meaningful fraction of the traffic within urban cores draw its energy from batteries,” maintains Dr. Hykawy. “That would do a great deal to improve the strength of the US dollar, increase US energy security, stimulate the US economy and increase the quality of life in cities by both cleaning the air and reducing noise levels. By relying on batteries for transport instead of oil, the US can curtail its current $300 billion annual habit for foreign oil.”
3 Comments on "Lithium: The Next Frontier in Alternative Energy"
Tim Grano on Sat, 14th Aug 2010 7:57 am
A lithium Ion battery is not my choice battery for a 100% electric powered car because its rivaled by a competitor with a fearful flaw. The lipo lithium polymer battery is used in radio controlled cars trucks planes boats and whatever else we can dream up and it has a much higher power output than its lithium ion predecessor. Also it lasts longer and is much lighter per power output. The flaw is that its chemistry can become unstable if the power becomes too low and you can have a melt down. If engineers and scientists can solve this problem the lipo is my choice battery for the future.
DC on Sat, 14th Aug 2010 1:12 pm
Li-on is not a solution for anything. The only reason automakers are interested in Li-on is that it is an expensive complex and inferior battery format that presents NO threat to the continued dominance of the ICE engine. By pushing token numbers of expensive technologically inferior Li-on cars, lke the vapor-ware volt, automakers can continue to churn out ICE knowing full-well, li-on has zero chance of makeing any headway. This is why no-one is makeing full-on EV;s wit NiHM, that chemistry usese a stable, common element, is extremely long lasting and durable(see RAV4-EV), is simpler than Li-on and could be mass-produced much more easily than Li-on ever could. This is why Chevron and Cobasys contine to hinder NiHM through patent encumbrance, of course it also helps that they refuse to actually build or licence the manufacture of these packs to anyone, except under the most restrictive conditions.
Of course, as efficent and clean EV;s are, replaceing millions of gas-burning trash bins with millions of EV’s leaves virtually ALL the problems associated with personal cars un-resolved, sprawl, massive investments required to maintain roadways, deaths and injury due to traffice accidents etc. Li-on is as much a hoax and diverstion in its own way as the hydrogen FCV scam. Another hoax that GM it is worth noting, pushes with great enthusiasm while telling people it will take decades(never actually) for FCV to become a “reality”.
Simon Wigzell on Sun, 15th Aug 2010 11:49 am
I just do not believe that electric cars that carry their electricty with them in a huge and heavy battery made of hundreds of pounds of rare metals is the solution to any of our problems. Does anyone seriously think we have enough raw materials in the world to build hundreds of millions of 1 ton batteries that will need replacing every few years? What about the cost of mining, refining and transporting these metals thousands of miles? With what? Oil powered machines no doubt.
Electric vehicles yes, but let them get their electicity from an external source – overhead wires like trolleys, a metal strip source in the middle of the road, microwaves, satellites, something Tesla was working on. I don’t know the details but the car should just be a light weight shell with a small electic motor getting its juice externally if it is really to be a replacement for our current heavy gas guzzlers. Of course do away with private transport alltogether but still the public transit should be more like the trolley and less like the bus.